Last week I made a delicious roasted squash soup, but in order to ease in the concept of soup for dinner to my husband, I decided to whip up some of my trusty pizza dough to serve alongside. Originally, I was just thinking of making a simple herbed flatbread, but then I had an idea that changed the game forever. Forget making a flat bread or a foccacia, I was going to make a garlicky Parmesan roll. And cinnamon buns for dessert. Like I said, the idea was a game changer. And super simple to boot.

The idea is stupid simple. Make the pizza dough but then divide it into 2 balls. Roll out each ball into a rectangle. Spread a mix of fresh minced garlic, herbs, butter and Parmesan cheese over top the dough and then roll it up into a big cigar. Slice it into buns and pack them into a small cast iron pan or a round cake tin. Repeat with the other ball and use a mix of cinnamon, brown sugar, currants, walnuts and butter if you want to switch things up to satisfy your sweet tooth. Let the dough rise and puff up for 20-30 minutes and then pop them into the oven until golden brown.

And the rolls that come out of the oven are glorious. Garlicky and buttery, they go well with a squash soup and help turn the husband’s frown upside down (seriously, having a soup-hating husband kinda sucks). The cinnamon version I topped with a cream cheese glaze right out of the oven – perfect for a bite after dinner and plenty leftover for breakfast the next day. Marvellous, to quote the husband.

I know this pizza dough is a favourite for many of you, me included – I make at least a batch every month but often times it can border on once a week. It’s easy and now it’s super versatile too. A pizza redux win.

1 simple dough = 2 awesome rollsTo keep things simple, I’m using one batch of pizza dough (recipe here) and dividing it into 2 balls. One 1/2 batch will make the garlic parmesan rolls while the other will make the cinnamon rolls. It is key to divide the 1 batch into 2 balls for ease in rolling the dough, whatever option you choose. You, however, can choose your own filling, sweet or savoury, or both. I got 7 rolls out of the garlic version and 8 rolls out of the cinnamon one – my split dough was not quite equal, but it should give you some idea of how many rolls this recipe makes.

Roll out the dough onto a floured surface into a rectangle shape – it should be 1/8″ – 1/4″ thin, but sturdy (no holes). In a small bowl, mix together the butter, garlic, herbs and Parmesan. Spoon out the mixture evenly onto the dough and spread it around using the back of a spoon, leaving a 1/4″ space around the edges. Roll it up and slice into approximately 1″ slices. Place slices into a small-medium sized cast iron pan or cake tin. If using a cake tin, you might need to butter up the bottom and sides to prevent sticking (I didn’t have that issue with an ungreased cast iron pan). It’s okay if the dough slices touch or if there’s a small bit of space between them. Let them rise for 20-30 minutes and then bake them for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Roll out the dough onto a floured surface into a rectangle shape – it should be 1/8″ – 1/4″ thin, but sturdy (no holes). In a small bowl, mix together the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Spoon out the mixture evenly onto the dough and spread it around using the back of a spoon, leaving a 1/4″ space around the edges. Sprinkle with walnuts and currants, if using. Roll it up and slice into approximately 1″ slices. Place slices into a small-medium sized cast iron pan or cake tin. If using a cake tin, you might need to butter up the bottom and sides to prevent sticking (I didn’t have that issue with an ungreased cast iron pan). It’s okay if the dough slices touch or if there’s a small bit of space between them. Let them rise for 20-30 minutes and then bake them for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

While the rolls are baking, mix up the cream cheese glaze, adding more milk if needed. Drizzle over rolls as soon as they are out of the oven.

I want to sing about these rolls from the rooftops. They look FABULOUS. Garlic parmesan rolls AND cinnamon rolls? It’s almost too much (but really, just right).
PS. What is it about men and hating soup?! Just further proof that they really are from Mars.

Great idea! I have a soup hating husband too and agree that distraction is the name of the game. Toppings and breads are usually enough to rope him in for at least one meal then I eat leftover soup for two weeks. Why did nobody think of this before?

I’m actually cooking chicken soup right now as I suddenly came down with a cold. Your garlic buns have would be a welcome addition to my meal. However, I am not that energetic at the moment so any baking will have to wait. I will return to this post, mark my words 🙂